Mister Mom
by kaela097
Summary: When Blair comes down with the flu, it leaves Chuck to take care of his children for the day all by himself. He decides a day at the park is in order. Complications arise.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.**

**This promises to be a short story. It really has no point, nor do I intend it to advance any real plot of my long running series though it does fit in just a few months after Blair gives birth to their first son Brice. It's meant to be just a fluffy look into the lives of Chuck and Blair. Enjoy, and please let me know what you think.**

"Is everything alright, Beautiful," Chuck inquired as he was jolted awake by his wife's movements as she climbed back into bed. It was the middle of the night, and their room was surrounded by nothing but blackness. He was surprised that he hadn't been woken up when she left their bed as he was such a light sleeper.

"I think I caught Charlotte's flu from last week," Blair groaned as she curled herself into a ball as far away from her husband as possible.

"Are you sure it's the flu and not something else," he inquired nervously. Her past with bulimia wasn't even a thought, but the chances of her being pregnant for a third time was always a possibility. They took precautions, or rather she took precautions, but nothing aside from abstinence was fool proof. Being they were Blair and Chuck, abstinence wasn't an option.

"I'm not pregnant," she snapped.

Chuck breathed a silent sigh of relief. Charlotte was two and a half, and Brice was just barely six months old. They weren't ready to add another child to their brood.

"What do you need me to do?" he inquired as he slid closer to her and began to rub her back gently.

"Take care of our children, and keep your hands off me," she hissed.

He pulled his hand away quickly as if he'd been burned. He mentally began cursing himself. He knew better. She was not pleasant when ill, and she hated to be touched.

There were few times in their relationship in which she didn't like him touching her, the first was when she was very pregnant and on the verge of giving birth and the second was when she was ill. He hated both cases as he always craved her. When she was pregnant it was easy to quell his cravings, but not when she was ill.

"Do you need some club soda?" he inquired as he pushed her apparent rejection out of his mind.

"I need you to leave me alone," she growled as a violent shiver ravaged her body, "And pile on all the blankets in the penthouse. I'm freezing."

Chuck quickly pulled all the bedcovers high over her shoulders and then went into the hall closet to pull out additional blankets as she requested. When he returned to the bedroom the covers had been thrown off and she was nowhere in sight. He heard her in the bathroom and groaned. She truly was sick. After laying out all the blankets on the bed in preparation for her inevitable return, he went into the kitchen and retrieved all the remedies they'd stocked up on while Charlotte had been ill the week prior.

He couldn't help but feel guilty. She'd taken care of Charlotte while he'd been in charge of Brice's care. It was one of the rare moments in which their daughter preferred her mother's care to his. They'd kept the duties separate until Charlotte was no longer contagious so that they wouldn't pass along her bug to Brice. It made sense that Blair was the one to get sick.

Returning to their bedroom once more, she was back in bed with the covers pulled completely over her head. He set down the supplies, retrieved a trashcan from their bathroom, and then gave her the space she always needed when ill. It killed him to do so, but it was what she always wanted.

He made his way into Brice's room to check on his soundly sleep infant son. He studied him closely. He looked every bit like himself. From the chisel chin to the natural scowl on his face, even in sleep, he was the spitting image of Chuck, though when awake he always had a mischievous grin on his face. He was a quiet child, very pensive and observant. He was always scanning his surroundings as if trying to figure out how this world he'd entered worked. Blair had already pronounced that he was going to have his father's intelligence.

Though Chuck had never been good with schooling it wasn't because he wasn't capable. He wasn't interested. He'd lost interest in elementary school mostly because he learned everything so quickly that he grew bored with the teacher's repetitiveness and tuned them out. He preferred to go at his own pace and spent most of his time reading what was being taught rather than listening to instructions.

Chuck gingerly picked Brice up, hoping to not wake him. Just before he turned away from the crib, the tiny red light of baby monitor caught his attention. He quickly turned it off so he would not disturb Blair before he made his way towards the rocking chair in the corner of the room near the window. It was the same chair he spent countless hours rocking Charlotte a few years earlier.

"I never imagined I'd say this just a few short years ago, Little Man, but I love being a father to you and Charlotte," he spoke softly so as to not awake Brice. "I love it almost as much as making love to your beautiful mother, which you'll come to realize is saying a lot."

Brice hiccupped softly as his eyes began to flutter open. Chuck tried to summon the anger that he knew he should feel for waking his son up, but he couldn't do it. Brice's only reaction was to shoot off his mischievous grin as he stretched in his father's arms.

"You get that grin from me," Chuck cooed, "I see why your mother thought it was trouble for so many years. I'm not going to be able to deny you anything, not that I've ever had any intention of doing so anyways. You'll both figure it out soon enough, but I'm going to be the push over. Mommy is going to be the stern one, though don't you or Charlotte get any ideas. I might be a push over, but I will be stern when I need to be. You will not be getting away with any of the things your mother and I did."

Brice laughed in response. Whether he was laughing at his father remained to be seen, but the sound brought out his father's laugh as well.

"I should start telling you stories of your Grandfather Bart. He was a complicated man, and we had a complicated relationship, but we had good times, a few anyways. I want you to know about those," he told him, "There was this time when I was very young. I don't even remember how old I was, perhaps before I had met your mother even. Bart came home from work with tickets to a New York Rangers game. I'd never seen a hockey game before. I couldn't even have told you what the point was, but he bundled me up in my warmest winter coat and stuffed me into his limo, and we went to the game. I remember being too afraid to do or say anything, so when he cheered, I cheered, when he cursed, I cursed. The old man thought it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard when my first curse word tumbled from my lips.

"A responsible parent would be cursing themselves out for teaching me the word, but not Bart. He was laughing so hard that I thought he was going to fall out of his seat. It was such a foreign sound to me as I'm not so sure that wasn't the first time I'd ever heard him laugh, and because he laughed, I laughed.

"Bart bought me a hotdog and cotton candy. I ended up with mustard on my shirt and blue sugar streaks across my face. I thought he would scold me for being messy, but he merely wiped my shirt and face and ruffled my hair.

"After the game, he bought me a foam finger and carried me back to the waiting limo on his shoulders. It was the best day of my life up to that point. Somehow it became something of a ritual outing for us – once a year he'd take me to a sporting event or just dinner. He'd drop his guard, and we'd just talk.

"To this day, I do not know what inspired his father-son bonding moments, but I've always remembered them with perfect clarity in a way I remember little else aside from my life with your mother.

"If Bart was still here, I believe spending time with you and Charlotte would have melted his heart completely, and we could have had father-son-grandfather moments that you'd surely remember for the rest of your life.

"When you get a little older, I'll start having those father-son moments with you," Chuck told him as Brice gave a healthy yawn as he appeared to be falling back to sleep. "But one thing I will promise is those bonding moments will not be the extent of our relationship like it was for me and Bart. I love you little man."

Brice's eyes drifted closed as he fell back to sleep. Chuck carefully repositioned him against his shoulder so that he was in a more comfortable position and closed his eyes as well. It would be morning, with the sun shining brightly into his son's bedroom before he'd wake to the feeling of Charlotte tapping his knee to get his attention.

"Daddy, Mommy sick," Charlotte frowned.

"I know, Sweetheart," Chuck told her as he stood up slowly to return Brice to his crib. "We're going to let Mommy stay in bed today to get better, so it will be you, me, and Brice today."

"No Brice," she pouted in her cute little Waldorf pout that Chuck adored as much on Charlotte as he did on her mother years earlier.

"Yes, Brice," he chuckled as he bent down to pick her up. Charlotte had done well with adjusting to Brice and all the attention that he received when he first came home, but that was when she was receiving as many gifts as he was. As the newness of having Brice around wore off, she was finding creative ways of putting herself in the spotlight. While she hadn't resorted to hiding Brice as he vaguely remembered hearing Serena do when Eric came into the picture, she did act out and throw tantrums unlike her previous demeanor. Blair and Chuck took it all in stride. They let her have her tantrum and then would punish her with a time out, but they also made sure to devote time to her after the fact as clearly their little girl was feeling neglected.

Charlotte continued to pout as she hugged his neck tightly in hopes that her natural charm would wear on her daddy enough to change his mind.

"What do you think we should do with Brice today?" Chuck inquired as he turned and looked out the window to see the sun shining brightly. Clearly it would be a good day to do something outside.

Charlotte shrugged her shoulders as her pout disappeared. She hadn't missing Chuck's need to include Brice, but she knew by his tone that he wasn't going to change his mind either.

"How about we go see the penguins at Central Park," he suggested. He knew before he spoke the words that she would begin to cheer in excitement, and she didn't disappoint. Since the first time he took her to the park as an infant, it had always been her favorite outdoors activity next to the carousel. With only himself to watch over the pair, he knew that wasn't going to be an option. "How about you have Dorota help you get dressed while I check in on Mommy and get ready myself?"

She nodded eagerly as he put her down. She dashed from the room calling out to the maid for help.

Chuck shook his head with laughter as he looked in on Brice once more before he left him to get dressed for the day.

"How you feeling, Beautiful?" Chuck inquired as he pressed his lips to Blair's forehead as he stepped in to check on her.

"Awful," she muttered.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, though there wasn't anything he could do to make her feel better.

"Did Charlotte find you?" she inquired as she rolled onto her back, "She came in looking for attention. I sent her to find you."

"She found me," he nodded, "I'm taking her and Brice to the park to see the penguins once everyone is ready for the day. It looks to be a beautiful day outside."

"I wish I could go with you," she pouted in the same way their daughter did minutes earlier. She loved the family outings in Central Park.

"We wish you could too," he nodded as he stroked her hair away from her face.

"Make sure you remember Charlotte's stuffed penguin," Blair advised him, "She doesn't need another one. She has three already. She certainly doesn't need her own foamed flock."

"I'll remember," he responded as he mentally made a note to include one of the stuffed animals from Charlotte's bedroom.

"And make sure Brice wears a hat to cover his head and that you take the stroller with the shade to cover him. He doesn't need to be getting a sunburn at his age," Blair added as her motherly tone came out despite her illness.

"I know how to take care of our children as well as you," he reminded her.

"I know," she sighed, "I'm not trying to imply that you aren't capable. We're a team, and I'm reminding you as a member of the team."

"I'll leave Dorota here to take care of you," Chuck told her.

"Are you sure you can handle them both on your own?" Blair inquired hesitantly. "You'll be outnumbered."

"I'll be fine. It's just Charlotte and Brice, how bad could it get," he laughed as he kissed her forehead again, "Get some rest."

**TBC . . . **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.**

**You all have humbled me with the number of encouraging responses that I received from chapter one. Thank you all. **

"Come on, Charlotte, hop out," Chuck encouraged his daughter as the limo pulled up to Central Park.

Charlotte did as was told as Arthur pulled Brice's stroller out of the trunk and set it up. Charlotte waited eagerly next to the stroller. She was so eager for the day that she was nearly jumping up and down in excitement as Chuck climbed out with Brice held securely against his chest. His son had just woken up from his nap and was a bit cranky. From past experience, Chuck knew that listening to his own heartbeat calmed Brice down.

"Anything else, Mister Bass?" Arthur inquired.

"No, thank you, Arthur, I'll call you when we're ready to be picked up," Chuck assured his long time driver.

"Of course, Mister Bass," Arthur nodded.

"Bye, Arthur," Charlotte chimed in as she waved goodbye.

"Ready for penguins, Charlotte?" Chuck inquired as he attempted to lower Brice into his stroller. He was immediately met with frustrated groans of displeasure as Brice refused to sit still, reaching up at a dangerous angle to be picked up again. Not willing to risk his son's safety, Chuck caved immediately.

"Carousel," Charlotte announced.

"Sorry, Sweetheart, no carousel today," Chuck told her just as the limo pulled away.

"Carousel," she stomped her foot as she crossed her arms and began to pout.

"I know you want to ride the pretty horses, but we can't do it today," Chuck told her gently.

"Carousel!" she shouted as she started crying her large, fat, crocodile tears while screaming at the top of her lungs. Passersby began to stare, looking at Charlotte and commenting on what a spoiled child she must be, and shaking their heads in Chuck's direction for allowing her to get so out of control.

"Charlotte," Chuck tried to calm her down. "How about instead of the carousel, we get ice cream."

"Carousel!" she hollered as she started jumping up and down as her tantrum was in full effect.

Brice chose that moment to spit up on his jacket, squirming still in his arms as he fed off his sister's negative vibe and started wailing himself.

"Charlotte, follow me," Chuck told her sternly as he adjusted his grip on his son, grabbed a hold of the stroller and made his way towards the nearest bench. The sternness in his voice surprised his little girl. He never scolded her or raised his voice in anger. She followed along without incident, but as soon as he was seated on the bench, she began hollering again as she jumped up and down.

"Charlotte, we can't do the carousel today," Chuck tried to tell her calmly, "I can't watch you and Brice at the same time."

That revelation just made things worse. She was clearly tired of her little brother interfering in her activities with Daddy.

Chuck began to panic. His gut reaction was to call Blair to come rescue him, but she wasn't an option.

"Nathaniel, I need your help," Chuck stated, his voice desperate with need.

"Is that Charlotte?" Nate exclaimed as he heard the screeching in the background.

"Blair is home sick. I took Brice and Charlotte to the park, and Charlotte is in the middle of a meltdown. If she doesn't get to ride the carousel, she's going to go nuclear, and I can't juggle both children," Chuck explained.

"Say no more," Nate laughed, "I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

Charlotte let out another blood curling scream. Nate hung up quickly to preserve his eardrums. He momentarily thought about bailing on his best friend.

"Charlotte," Chuck scolded her, "Where is my little princess?"

"Carousel," she stated curtly.

"Got it," Chuck replied, "As soon as your Uncle Nate gets here, we'll take you to the carousel, but you have to calm down first. If you don't, I'm calling Arthur and taking you back home."

Charlotte's lip quivered as she looked at her father. His eyes told her that he would make good on his threat, so she stopped yelling. A few more tears trailed down her cheeks as she crawled up onto the bench next to him, putting her arms around his neck as she wiped her cheeks on his jacket.

"I love you, Daddy," she stated sweetly.

"I love you, too, Charlotte," he sighed in relief as he kissed her forehead.

Charlotte began kissing his cheek repeatedly to make up for her behavior from moments earlier as she was nearly as good at making amends as her mother.

"Nathaniel, you are earning your godfather title today," Chuck sighed in relief as Nate approached the trio.

"Hey, Charlee," Nate cooed as he picked up his goddaughter as she reached out for him, "How's my favorite Upper East Side princess today?"

"Missed you, Uncle Nate," Charlotte responded as she kissed his cheek.

"I missed you more," Nate replied as he felt his insides melting at her touch. He had such a soft spot for the little girl. What made it all the more unfair was that she knew it and how to work it to her advantage.

"Ponies, Uncle Nate," Charlotte proclaimed as she pointed towards what she hoped was the direction of the carousel.

"Does she mean real ponies?" Nate looked to Chuck for clarification. He wasn't sure if he should head to the stable or carnival ride.

"Most likely she means the carousel, but perhaps we could introduce her to something new today," Chuck suggested as he rose up with Brice in his arms so that he was eye level with Charlotte. "Princess, do you want to see a real pony?"

"Yes," she nodded her head vigorously as Nate tickled her stomach to draw out her sweet little giggle.

"How about it, Brice?" Chuck inquired as he bounced his son up and down a couple times to draw out his own laugh.

As the adults carried the children to the stables off in the distance, they began to receive unusual stares as people where whispering as they passed by.

"I haven't felt this self conscious since high school," Nate grumbled to Chuck. "What do you suppose they're staring at?"

Chuck began to laugh as he heard the words "They ought to be ashamed of themselves" from an elderly woman that passed them while giving them an outright look of distain.

"I'm only guessing here, but I think these delightful strangers think that you and I are a homosexual pair taking their son and daughter for a summer stroll," Chuck continued to laugh.

"Should we hold hands to really sell the idea?" Nate smirked.

"Forget it, Archibald, you aren't my type," Chuck scoffed playfully.

"Come on, you could do far worse for a life partner than me," Nate stated defensively.

"I have a thing for brunettes in case you have forgotten," Chuck reminded him as he kissed the top of Brice's brunette head.

"There was a time in which you didn't have a type. I think the only requirement you really had was the need for them to still be breathing," Nate reminded him.

Chuck merely laughed as the stables came in to full view as Charlotte squealed in excitement as the first of the horses could be seen. Charlotte's giddiness completely erased any witty reply Chuck was going to make.

"Pony!" Charlotte squealed as she pointed eagerly to the first horse she saw.

"No, Charlee, that's a horse," Nate corrected her.

"Horsey!" she squealed as she bounced up and down in his arms. "Daddy, Horsey!"

"I see, Charlotte," Chuck smiled as he pointed towards the horse with his hand so that Brice would turn and look. As the horse came in closer, Brice's eyes widened. Chuck watched his son closely for any sign of fear. Charlotte's eagerness was easy to determine as she repeatedly yelled out, "Horsey!" until the animal was within her reach.

"Pet the horse gently," Nate instructed her as she reached out to poke the large brown animal. The horse vocalized his displeasure at the treatment in a way that may Nate a little nervous, but once Charlotte began stroking his mane softly, the horse calmed down immediately.

Chuck kept Brice a safe distance away. He couldn't yet decide how his son was receiving the large animal, and he didn't want to force the issue and have him scream his little lungs out. Charlotte had done enough of that earlier.

"Soft horsey," Charlotte stated as she continued to stroke the horse's mane.

"What sound does the horse make?" Nate inquired. Charlotte did the best horse impression she could. The horse reacted to what Nate translated as humor.

"Would you like your little girl to feed him?" one of the caretaker's inquired as she approached, rubbing her hand suggestively across Nate's shoulder.

"Oh, she's not mine," Nate clarified quickly, "She's my goddaughter."

"She's so cute," the woman stated as she pinched Charlotte's cheeks.

"Ouch!" Charlotte exclaimed as she pushed the rude blonde's hands away.

"How old are you, Sweetheart?" the lady inquired.

"Two," Charlotte stated very matter of fact.

"Going on fifteen," Nate chimed in as he gave his flirty grin to the woman.

Chuck merely watched the interaction with amusement. Nate had been dating Vanessa for over two years, but it always seemed as though he was looking for a replacement. Chuck had never been curious enough to ask, but the way he was flirting with the caretaker made him believe that Nate and Vanessa had an open relationship. Perhaps today was the day to broach the subject.

Brice touched Chuck's lips to get his attention as he'd been reaching out to touch the horse, but was much too far away to succeed. "Sorry, Little Man," Chuck smirked as he kissed Brice's forehead, "Just watching your godfather work. There was a time when Daddy was this smooth with the ladies, but certainly no more."

Brice reached towards the horse yet again and gave a frustrated grunt. Chuck took the hint and quickly stepped in to interrupt Nate's flirty banter.

"Here's Charlotte's father," Nate stated as he patted Chuck on the back as he stepped away to make room for Brice to pet the horse.

"Is this your brother?" the lady, who Chuck learned was named Tiffany, inquired of Charlotte.

"Yes," Charlotte replied with a mildly annoyed sigh. Her tone told Chuck that she wasn't at all impressed with the woman speaking to her. Chuck had a suspicion that if Blair had been there, she wouldn't have been either.

"You are a lucky little girl to have such a handsome father and godfather to take you to the park to pet the horsey," Tiffany cooed.

"Daddy, picture for Mommy," Charlotte requested.

"Good idea, Princess," Chuck stated as he pulled out his phone and thrust it towards the woman. "Would you mind? My wife is sick in bed with the flu. She'll want to see this."

Tiffany stepped back as Nate and Chuck arranged the children of maximum photo coverage of their smiling faces.

After several minutes of bonding with the animal, Chuck realized it was the children's lunchtime. It took a few minutes of coaxing, but they got the children away with very little fussing. Chuck wasn't the least bit surprised to see the caretaker give Nate her phone number, but his eyes went wide when she slipped the same size paper into his hand.

"If you and your friend are in need of private riding lessons or anything else that may interest you, give me a call," the woman whispered into his ear, "I'm game if you are, Chuck Bass."

"I guess she did recognize us," Nate replied as they walked away as Charlotte and Brice waved their goodbye to the horses. Chuck noticed that Nate pocketed the note at the same time as he crushed the piece of paper into his hands and threw it into the nearest trash can.

"You sound pleased by that," Chuck responded as he studied his friend curiously.

"There are days when it is very beneficial to be Nate Archibald," he shrugged.

"I've never asked this question before, but perhaps I should," Chuck setup his question, "What is the deal with your relationship with Vanessa? Would she be okay with you taking that woman out."

"Probably not," Nate shook his head as the guilt crossed his face.

"Then I'm baffled as to why you pocketed that paper instead of trashing it like the piece who gave it to you," Chuck responded.

"You think Tiffany was trash?" Nate frowned.

"Any woman who offers a married man her phone number and then suggests a threesome is trash," Chuck clarified his position.

"How would she know you're married?" Nate inquired defensively.

"Well, first there are these two adorable children in our arms. Then there was the reference to my wife who is in bed with the flu, and then of course, the wedding ring on my left hand. If she's dense enough to miss any of that, then she's still not worth your time," Chuck explained, "Not to mention she knew my name. If she knew who I was, she certainly knew who I was married to. Blair isn't shy about keeping her claim on her territory, nor am I shy about letting her."

"But your married, I'm not," Nate replied.

"But you are in a relationship," Chuck pointed out, "One that you've put two years into. You love Vanessa, don't you?"

"I do," he nodded.

"Then it's time to grow up," Chuck told him, "Act like the adult that I know you can be and commit to her."

"You giving me relationship advice," Nate scoffed, "Seems a little out of place."

"Uncle Nate, I like Vanessa," Charlotte told him as she interrupted the men's conversation.

"This is coming from Blair's daughter, let me remind you," Chuck added. "I know Blair and Vanessa had their differences in years past, but she likes who you are with Vanessa. And I think you like who you are with Vanessa, but are afraid to commit. Look at my life Nathaniel. Look at how happy I am with my life. Don't you want this? Don't you want that adorable little girl that looks to you the way Charlotte looks to me?"

"Eventually," Nate conceded, "But you and Blair have been together forever. You knew what you were getting into when you married. Vanessa and I are still trying to figure each other out."

"Blair can still be a mystery to me some days," Chuck assured him, "But that's what makes what we have so amazing, but if you keep Miss Tiffany's phone number, you won't ever find that out for yourself."

"I just don't want to end up like my parents," Nate replied with a sense of dread in his voice. "I don't want to just go through the motions and then wake up one morning and realize that I married someone completely different than who I thought I did."

"It doesn't have to be like that," Chuck assured him.

"Don't you worry that you'll wake up one morning twenty years down the road as find that you married someone different?" Nate frowned.

"How long have you known Blair," Chuck exclaimed. "She is who she is, and that will never change."

Nate walked for several moments in complete silence. Chuck couldn't tell if he was stewing or just giving what he'd said serious thought.

"Look, I get it," Chuck stated finally. "Anne and the Captain where unhappy together. I had just as good of a seat as you did, and I understand the hesitation to commit. If you have your doubts about Vanessa, then you have your doubts. I won't talk you into making the ultimate commitment to her, but give yourself a chance."

"When I look at my life ten years down the road, I don't see Vanessa in the picture," Nate confessed, "And it's not because I don't want her to be there. I don't know if she wants to commit to me. We have talked about moving in together, but she seems hesitant almost afraid."

"Have you talked about what is causing that fear?" Chuck inquired.

"No," Nate admitted.

"Do you want to know what lead to the ultimate failure of your relationship with Blair?" Chuck offered.

"Me sleeping with Serena and then you sleeping with her," Nate responded instantly.

"That certainly didn't help matters, but you could have worked through those issues if you were meant to be together. What ultimately caused your demise was your fear of having the emotional conversations. If Blair was upset, you passed her off to someone else to find out what was wrong and help her through it, whether it was me or Serena," Chuck explained, "Relationships are about more than sex, romance and having meals together. It's about conversations and sharing your thoughts, views and desires with each other. If Vanessa doesn't feel she can talk to you, she'll go find someone that she can talk to. Don't run from these feelings your having. If you're feeling them, chances are she is too."

"I've never been good with expressing my emotions," Nate admitted.

"Neither was I," Chuck replied, "It took me how many years before I could admit that I loved Blair. It's something that takes practice."

Nate pulled the paper out of his pocket and looked at the cursive handwriting before he looked at Charlotte whose head was resting against his shoulder in just such a way that she could see her daddy, her eyes looking at him adoringly.

"It's worth it, isn't it," Nate concluded as the paper found the nearest trash receptacle he passed.

"Oh, yeah," Chuck nodded as he kissed the top of Brice's head. "Being with Blair and these two everyday is worth everything. Forced to choose, I'd give up my entire fortune and all my worldly possessions to spend just one more day with them."

"I love you, Daddy," Charlotte chimed in with her impeccable as always timing.

"I love you too, Princess," Chuck smiled as he bent towards her and kissed her cheek softly.

Usually not one to get emotional, Nate couldn't help the few tears that tumbled down his cheek at the innocent and natural interaction between father and daughter.

**TBC . . .**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.**

**Another great big thank you to all of you who reviewed. Your encouragement keeps my creative juices flowing. It's a good trade off in my mind.**

"Daddy, do I have to finish?" Charlotte inquired as she held the ginormous for her hot dog in her tiny hands. It had been Nate's idea to have hot dogs in the park. Charlotte didn't seem to be too keen on the idea.

"What's the matter, Charlee, don't you like the hot dog?" Nate inquired as he took a giant bite from the end of her lunch, forcing a giggle from the little girl.

"It's big," she stated as she held it up to Nate for another bite. Once he took another bite she turned and handed it to her father although he already had his hands full with Brice and his own lunch. Demonstrating that he'd become and excellent juggler since entering fatherhood, the addition of her lunch didn't faze him in the slightest.

"We should call Mommy and see how's she's doing," Chuck suggested to Charlotte as he pitched the rest of his lunch as Nate unloaded the rest of Charlotte's hot dog from his hands to finish himself. Charlotte climbed into Chuck's lap, avoided touching her brother, and picked through his pockets until she found his cell phone. Without having to be told what to do, she pressed the correct button to start the call and then she pressed the device to her ear to wait for her mother's voice.

"Starting the girl early on cell phone technology, I see," Nate chuckled as his goddaughter's ease with the handheld communication device. Chuck merely laughed. Neither he or his wife taught their daughter this skill, she merely picked it up by watching her parents.

"Hello," Blair groaned as she answered the call.

"Hi, Mommy," Charlotte stated cheerfully.

"Hi, Princess," Blair smiled despite how awful she felt. "Are you and Brice having fun with Daddy?"

"We saw horsey," she relayed.

"Really, what color was it?" Blair inquired.

"Brown," Charlotte replied cheerfully, "And it laughed at Uncle Nate."

"Uncle Nate," Blair repeated in confusion. "Why are you with Uncle Nate?"

"We saw horsey," Charlotte repeated, having no other words to really answer her mother's question.

"Put Daddy on the phone," Blair requested as all the worst case scenarios began to float through her mind as she tried to figure out why Nate was with Chuck.

"How are you feeling, Beautiful?" Chuck inquired as Charlotte held the phone to his ear.

"Why is Nate with you?" Blair asked immediately, "Is everything alright?"

"Everything is perfectly fine," he assured her, "Though it turns out it's a two person job taking our offspring to the park. Nate's earning his godfather badge today."

"And you saw a horsey," Blair relayed as she took a calming breath, "Real or plastic?"

"Real," he clarified as he took the phone out of Charlotte's hands as she wanted to get down.

"You'd better have at least one picture, Bass," Blair growled just as Charlotte slid free from Chuck's lap. She quickly climbed up onto the bench again and began entertaining her brother with silly faces.

"Not to worry, Beautiful," he assured her as his smile widened at the cute scene his children made as his best friend took out his own phone and began recording the pair, "But how are you feeling?"

"I've kept crackers down for twenty minutes, so I'd say that's progress," she groaned.

Chuck began laughing at Charlotte and Brice, which Blair misinterrupted. "I'm so pleased that my suffering is amusing you."

"I'm sorry, Beautiful," Chuck responded quickly, "I swear on my love for you that I'm not laughing because of your misery. Charlotte is making these faces for Brice, and he doesn't quite know what to make of them. His facial expressions range from sheer terror one second to near hysteria the next."

"And I'm missing it," Blair pouted.

"Uncle Nate is filming it," Chuck assured her, "We'll send it to you as soon as he's finished recording."

"You'd better, Bass," she scolded him. "Are they having a good day with Daddy?"

"It was a rocky start," Chuck explained, "But we're having fun now that Nathaniel's here. I promise to wear them out so they'll fall sound asleep on the ride home. You will still be able to convalesce in peace."

"Don't wear them out too much," she smiled, "You'll want them to sleep tonight."

"Excellent point," his smile widened at the excellent team they made even from the few blocks of New York real estate that separated them. "I love you, Beautiful."

"I love you, Handsome," she sighed happily.

"Feel better," he replied, "I'll be home to check on you soon."

"Dude, you should see your face right now," Nate smirked as he turned the phone towards his best friend as Chuck disconnected his call from Blair. He didn't need to see the photographic evidence to know that he had the dopey grin he always had after a sacrinely sweet call from Blair. He couldn't help it.

"I'm whipped and happily so," Chuck responded calmly though he knew that Nate was hoping to get a rise out of him.

"Daddy, penguins," Charlotte announced as she tired of entertaining Brice though the infant tried to encourage her to continue by reaching towards her and whining his encouragement.

"In a couple of minutes, Charlotte," Chuck told her as he held out the bottle of formula for Brice again. He rarely finished one all at once. He'd push the bottle away after a few minutes, but would return to it again and the cycle would repeat until the bottle was emptied. Chuck knew they couldn't leave until the bottle was empty. He wouldn't finish if the scenery began to change and would quickly get cranky as a result. "Brice needs to finish his lunch first, and then he needs his diaper changed."

"Is that what I'm smelling?" Nate sighed in relief, "I thought the New York sewers were backing up."

Chuck laughed at his friend's response, which Brice and Charlotte were quick to imitate as Brice took the bottle back into his mouth and resumed his lunch while rocking back into his father's arms. Chuck could see his eyelids drifting closed. He was going to be falling asleep for his nap soon, which would make the next few hours go much easier.

"Daddy, penguins!" Charlotte exclaimed with glee as they approached the flightless birds' habitat.

"I see, Charlotte, I see," Chuck told her as he was virtually being dragged along behind her. Nate was bringing up the rear with Brice sound asleep against his chest as he pushed the unused stroller.

Charlotte squealed with joy as one bird swam right passed her the moment she approached the glass as if they were welcoming her back. Her eyes darted back and forth as she watched with rapture as the black and white birds went about their normal lives. Chuck knelt next to her and watched her watch the birds. She was a regular at their exhibit, spending as much time as her parents would allow, yet she never tired of it as she did other activities.

Brice wasn't nearly as patient with this activity as his sister. He appeared to already have these birds figured out and was looking for something new to hold his attentions. Chuck or Blair usually had to find him something else to occupy his time, so Charlotte wouldn't get annoyed with his interference. With him asleep, Charlotte could watch for as long as she wanted with no distractions.

"She really likes these tuxedo birds, doesn't she," Nate concluded as Charlotte parked herself down on Chuck's bent knee as her feet began to pinch in the shoes she'd insisted on wearing despite her father's warning.

"She'd sleep here if we let her," Chuck responded as he bounced her up and down a few times.

"Stop it, Daddy!" she exclaimed in displeasure as his motions were distracting her observations.

"I'm sorry, Princess," he smirked as he kissed the top of her head as he stopped his bouncing.

She turned towards him suddenly with her big puppy dog eyes. Chuck knew immediately what was coming. "Daddy, can I have a penguin?" she inquired as she batted her eyelashes. Just as he opened his mouth she tossed in a charming "Please!"

With the stroller within reach, he was able to retrieve the stuffed penguin he'd thankfully stuffed underneath. Charlotte's eyes went wide as she wrapped her little arms around the stuffed animal, hugging it as tight as she could, her adoring smiled directed towards him. His heart melted. If she asked again that day, he'd give her the real penguin and anything else she asked for.

"I love you, Daddy," she grinned as she kissed her penguin's cheek.

"I love you, Princess," he replied as he ran his fingers through her perfect curls.

"Charlotte, show Uncle Nate how penguins walk," Chuck encouraged her.

Always eager to perform, Charlotte climbed off his knee, handed her father her penguin, put her feet together and began waddling as if she was a penguin with her hands tight against her sides.

"That's very good, Charlee," Nate responded with amusement as she kept waddling in circles around both himself and Chuck. "She's really cute when she does that."

"Impossible to resist," Chuck nodded as she snatched the penguin out of his hands and began dancing with it.

"That makes it ten times harder, doesn't it," Nate watched her twirl around as she hummed an off key tune from a fairytale movie she'd watched with her mother the previous day.

"You have no idea," Chuck replied as he stood to watch her prance around, a gigantic smile on his face.

It took a lot of coaxing, patience, and the promise of ice cream before they could get Charlotte away from the penguins without a second tantrum of the day.

"I'm full, Daddy," Charlotte announced as she lifted her ice cream cup towards her father after only a few bites. She'd insisted on the largest sundae possible, and Chuck gave in without protest. Now, she wasn't even ten bites in and full though he couldn't work up the energy to be angry.

"See if Uncle Nate wants any," Chuck motioned towards Nate as he already had his hands occupied with his sleeping son.

"Uncle Nate," Charlotte turned to lift the cup towards him. Though he was already working on his own treat, he eagerly accepted her.

"Is this what it's like being a father?" Nate chuckled, "Do you become a human garbage disposal?"

"It's part of it," Chuck nodded with a chuckle of his own, "And there's the hero worship factor."

"Sounds like an awesome gig," Nate responded.

"At the risk of sounding like a broken record, it is," Chuck nodded as Charlotte scooped a spoonful of ice cream and held it high for him. He couldn't resist the urge to take a bite. "Thank you, Princess."

Charlotte dropped the spoon into the cup and passed it to Nate.

"Daddy, carousel?" she asked sweetly.

"We should go see if Mommy is feeling better," Chuck told his daughter. "Perhaps another day, when Mommy can join us."

"Okay," she conceded as she stole a bite of her own ice cream from Nate then put the spoon back, trying to look completely innocent as if she'd done nothing at all.

"Too much like your mother," Nate laughed as he kissed the top of her head. Charlotte merely beamed with pride. To her, there was certainly nothing wrong with that statement.

She picked up her penguin off the chair that she'd insisted her stuffed animal sit on and began prancing around the soda shop. It wasn't only Nate and Chuck that became mesmerized by her performance. She had the entire shop's attention, and she loved every second of the attention.

**TBC . . .**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.**

"How are you feeling, Beautiful?" Chuck inquired as he gently shook his wife from her peaceful slumber.

"Chuck," she sighed happily as she rolled onto her back as she took in her husband's handsome features. "Hmmm, I missed you. Did you, Charlotte and Brice have fun in the park?"

"You were missed," he told her as he kissed her forehead. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little," she nodded, "I've kept down those crackers since I talked to you earlier, so I'd say that's progress."

"Charlotte's down for a nap, and Dorota is watching Brice. Did you need me to do anything for you?" he inquired.

"Can I get a back rub?" she asked.

"Of course," he smiled as she sat up slowly, turning herself around so that her bare back was exposed to him. His hands immediately went to work to slowly massage her shoulders. She winced slightly at his initial pressure, so he lightened his touch. Soon she was moaning happily as his hands flowed down her back. "You're making an awful lot of noise for not much pleasure."

"Speak for yourself," she moaned happily, "This feels like heaven right now."

"I know something else that feels like heaven," he replied as his breath was hot against the back of her neck.

"I've been throwing up for most of the day," she groaned, "Can you really be thinking about having sex with me right now?"

"Didn't stop me when you were pregnant with Charlotte or Brice," he reminded her, "I think you're beautiful one hundred percent of everyday, so yes I'm thinking about having sex with you. I never stop."

"You're such a sap," Blair replied.

"You're always in such a pleasant mood when you're sick," he chuckled, refusing to take her bait. "You should get sick more often."

Blair reached behind her back to slap his shoulder. "Basstard."

"I love it when you play rough," he whispered into her ear before he bit down on her lobe sharply.

"Awk," she exclaimed in surprise as she rubbed at her ear, "I can't believe you just bit me."

"It's just a love bite," he laughed.

"Why did you call in the cavalry in the park?" she inquired as he resumed his pleasurable massage.

"Charlotte threw a tantrum. Brice spit up on my jacket and refused to sit in his stroller. I realized I couldn't keep an eye on Charlotte, carry Brice, and push the stroller on all my own."

"You could have called Serena," Blair replied, "She's always moaning about how she doesn't spend enough time with her godchildren, and she doesn't have a job like Nate that I'm sure you pulled him away from."

"Serena is your wingman, Nathaniel is mine," Chuck replied.

"Wing person," Blair corrected him. "I'm sure Charlee had him eating out of the palm of her hand."

"Literally," he chuckled.

"Explain, Bass," Blair demanded.

"The hot dog and bowl of ice cream were too much for her. He became the designated garbage disposal today as my hands were always full of Brice," he replied.

"The video Nate shot of Brice and Charlotte was adorable," Blair smiled, "It made me feel a hundred percent better."

"I've never seen Charlotte interact with Brice like that before," Chuck admitted. "Usually she tolerates his existence only when she absolutely has to. Today she seemed accepting like a big sister."

"Maybe she finally is accepting," Blair smiled. "It's only taken six months."

"Nathaniel is a little lost right now," Chuck replied as his lips began to caress the nape of her neck again.

"He's been lost since kindergarten," Blair rolled her eyes even though Chuck couldn't see.

"Relationship wise," he clarified.

"Again, he's been lost since kindergarten . . . first girlfriend, remember."

"He loves Vanessa, but he's not sure she's the one," Chuck explained. "I want to help him, but I don't know how."

"You might not be able to," she replied, "Not everyone is as fortunate as us to find that one person we're destined to be with for eternity in high school."

"I want him to be happy, as happy as I am. Though rationally I know I didn't steal his one chance at happiness, I still feel responsible for how dysfunctional his love life is. My womanizing was a bad influence on him. I stole his woman. Then I basically abandoned him to be with you."

"First off, if you had as much of an influence as you think you do, he'd be married and settled down right now," Blair told him, "He might not be married to the right woman, but he'd be married. Secondly, you did not steal me away from him. Nate and I were broken up the first time you and I were together, granted for all of ten seconds, but he had no claim on me. When you and I finally got together for good, Nate was long out of my picture. And lastly, you did not abandon him. We kept our distance for a while so he could get used to the idea of us together. When we started our weekly nights apart, he was who you always went out with. We got away from that when we became parents, but we had to because our priorities changed. The only one responsible for Nate's relationship successes or failures is Nate."

"You may have a point," he conceded.

"What brought on all this guilty anyways?" she inquired as she laid herself down and pulled him to lay with her.

"When we brought Charlotte and Brice to see the horses at Central Park, there was a woman that began flirting with Nathaniel. As we were leaving she gave her phone number to the both of us, offering . . . well, that's not important."

He felt her tense in his arms at the revelation.

"I tossed the number as soon as I could, but Nathaniel pocketed it. I thought that perhaps he and Vanessa had some sort of arrangement. I was curious, so I asked. That's when he started talking about not being sure Vanessa was the one," he explained.

"He'll figure things out," Blair stated confidently as Chuck's hands began roaming her naked body without hesitation. "And for the record, I don't appreciate other women giving my husband their phone numbers. Do I need to go back to that stable hand and mark my territory?"

"Take a deep breath," Chuck whispered into her ear. "Your territory is very clearly marked."

"Then who is this woman to give my husband her phone number?" Blair hissed, "Any self respecting woman is not going to offer a very happily married man a phone number attached with an offer . . . an offer of what?"

"It's not important," Chuck assured her.

"It is to me, now spill," she demanded.

"A threesome with Nathaniel," Chuck begrudgingly admitted.

"I need her name, a description, and a crowbar," Blair snarled as she moved to get out of bed. Chuck's grip was just tight enough to keep her laying down.

"I don't believe we own a crowbar," he chuckled, "Though, I'll give you points for the reference."

"This isn't funny," she responded sternly.

"This is actually hysterical," Chuck continued to laugh even though she smacked his chest. "After all these years together, you still get insanely jealous even though you know you have no reason to be. You know my answer is always going to be no, so why even waste a moment's energy."

"I guess there is this little voice in my head that says if you find an offer tempting enough, you just might accept," she replied softly.

"There is no offer tempting enough, certainly not a threesome with Nathaniel. If I'm going to have a threesome it's going to be with two women," he teased.

"That's really not funny," she glared at him as she tried to pry his hands away from her body, "Not even a tiny bit funny."

"It's a tiny bit funny," he amended.

"I'm going to regret asking this, but did you and Nate ever do the threesome thing?" she winced as the words came out of her mouth.

"Not with each other," he told her, crying to maintain a level of seriousness though his eyes still sparkled with amusement. He couldn't believe this conversation, or the fact they'd never had it before.

"But you've done threesomes," she concluded.

"This isn't a surprise, is it?" he inquired.

"No, I guess not," she sighed, "It's always been an assumption on my part, on everyone's part really, but I've never asked and you've never confirmed. Do you ever get the urge to do them?"

"No," he scoffed, "I'm not willing to share you with anyone, male or female. I couldn't even tell you what the urge was to do it in the first place. All I can say is that it was a part of my irresponsible, reckless youth. You know how much I regret a lot of my choices. This is one of those regrets."

"Did Nate ever?" Blair inquired.

"I'm operating under the assumption that he has," Chuck replied, "I have no facts nor details, but I'm pretty sure he found a couple of co-eds in college."

"I sure knew how to pick them didn't I. Nate, Marcus, Carter, Jack . . . you. All of you have your quirks when it comes to sex," she sighed.

"Though none have reformed quite as well as I have, nor do any of them have the incentive that I do," he replied as he resumed his gentle caresses as she felt her begin to relax against him.

"Don't you ever forget that," Blair cautioned him.

"Never," he whispered into her ear.

"That feels good," she sighed as his hands flowed along her abdomen.

"You usually don't like me touching you when you're ill," he stated the obvious. "Are you sure it's just a stomach bug?"

"Yes," she nodded, "I'm one hundred percent certain that I'm not pregnant."

"You can't be one hundred percent certain," he spoke huskily into her ear, "Abstinence is the only certainty, and we both know we'll never achieve that unattainable goal."

"Nor would we want to," she smiled, "But I promise I'm not pregnant."

"For the record, if you were pregnant, you would tell me, wouldn't you?" he inquired.

"Of course," she responded, "I'd never keep something that monumental from you."

"Help me figure out what to do with Nathaniel," he requested.

"First off, tell him to stop having threesomes," she responded as she tensed up slightly in his arms.

"Any other ideas after that?" he pressed as a smirk lit up his face. This threesome idea was still clearly bothering her. When she was feeling better, he'd have to take extra special care to erase any doubt that she may be having regarding his need for a spicier sex life.

"Let him figure things out for himself. Only he will know when he's found his soul mate," she sighed, "And no matter how much you thrust it upon him, Vanessa may not be it."

"But she might be, and he'd not giving himself a chance to find that out. It took us how many years to figure out we were each other's soul mates. I don't want him to miss out on what we have because he can't get out of his own way to allow himself to realize it."

"If Vanessa is his soul mate, they'll figure it out. They'll overcome all obstacles and Nate's inability to commit. We did," she reminded him.

"We certainly did," he responded smoothly as he began nibbling on her earlobe again. He felt her melting against him. She was clearly becoming more amendable to his advances. Then suddenly she was no longer next to him as she scrambling into the bathroom. Chuck sighed in resignation as he heard her purge the saltine crackers she'd kept down for most of the afternoon. He slid out of bed and went to her, gathering her hair away from her neck, blowing lightly to cool her skin.

"For better or worse, Handsome," she choked out.

Chuck knelt down behind her and held her in his arms as she coughed out the remnants in her stomach.

"For better or worse," he repeated with an amused little chuckle. When she was done, he lifted her easily into his arms and carried her back to bed. She fell asleep instantly. Her words continued to echo in his mind. Things could be so much worse than a minor case of the stomach flu. It would be easy for Chuck to come up with worse scenarios as he'd been programmed to expect most of his life, but that wasn't his life anymore. Thanks to Blair and their children, expecting the worse wasn't the go to reaction anymore.

**The End.**

**Again I thank you all for taking this short journey with me. Please let me know what you all think.**


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